Keep your warehouse employees Healthy and Safe

Sebastian Duque

3 years ago

Keep Your Employees Healthy and Safe

Warehouse workers face challenges every day. The environment is hot, loud and busy. Everyone is constantly moving, counting, and stocking. Forklifts transport pallets up and down aisles as orders are filled, trucks arrive and storage space is created for new product. A warehouse is a busy, active environment with several moving parts.

The only thing not moving is the air. It stands still, stagnant and sweltering, as all of these moving parts fight their way through it. It is uncomfortable and draining of both physical and mental energy, making it hard to move with purpose and concentrate.

When temperatures are high, worker productivity is reduced by as much as 18% due to slower movement and increased breaks. In a study published by OSHA, high temperature environments can take away as much 20 productive minutes per hour per employee on top of that. In addition, the error rate can increase by as much as 40%, creating work that needs to be done again or corrected when the errors are discovered at a later date. These factors combine not only to drive more workforce dollars spent and increased operational costs, but can also lead to absenteeism as employees avoid working on extremely hot days. It could also become a source of high turnover as employees look for jobs with a more comfortable working environment.

Using High Volume Low Speed (HVLS) fans like those from MacroAir can change that. As warm air rises, it creates layers of varying degrees of warm air. At the floor level, the lack of air movement is what creates the stifling and warm temperatures. HVLS fans push large columns of cool air through those layers, dispersing the warm air and replacing it with fresh cool air and creating movement.

Cooler air leads to a happier, more industrious work force that enjoys coming to work and doing their job well. It creates an ideal scenario for the employer and employee. Beyond comfort, the cooler air has other positive indirect safety effects. Warm air can cause condensation, leading to slick floors and the possibility of slips and trips.

A comfortable air temperature also prevents condensation from damaging pallets and product, which can pose unnecessary safety risks as damaged pallets are discovered in transport when they collapse, or stock has be reshelved after cleaning condensation or removing mold from areas in the warehouse.

In addition to concentrating on their work better, employees will be more aware of their surroundings. This reduces the chance of forklift accidents or other incidents. They are more apt to help one another, recognize potential safety hazards, and look for opportunities to improve processes or find something more to do.

MacroAir fans add one more safety benefit: whisper quiet functionality. Warehouses are already noisy work environments and every decibel counts. Noise-related hearing loss is one of the most commonly reported occupational health issues with nearly 125,000 cases reported in the last ten years, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Due to MacroAir’s innovative gearless motor, there is no friction or gear noise to add to the existing commotion, helping the organization stay in compliance with OSHA and protect their employees.

Using HVLS fans like those by MacroAir provides both tangible and intangible health, welfare and safety benefits for the employee as well as saves money and reduces energy consumption. Get started today, using our $200 off coupon towards all MacroAir products at